1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a document processing system for processing documents comprising text data and image data such as figures, tables, and video images, and more particularly to a document processing system which can automatically lay out image data at appropriate locations in the text data.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the conventional document processing system such as a wordprocessor, desired image data such as a figure, a table, or a video image is laid out or embed in the text data forming a document, in the following method. First, an operator operates the keyboard of the system, thereby designating a desired location at which to lay out the desired image data in the text data. Then, the operator further operates the keyboard, thereby laying out the desired image at the location thus designated. (The image data is, in some cases, the data output by an image reader or a digitizer.) This method has a drawback. When the text data is edited, that is, corrected and/or altered, the image data may in some cases move to an undesirable position with respect to the text data. If this is the case, the operator must operate the keyboard to specify a new location at which to lay out the desired image data.
In a recently developed document processing system, such as a desktop publishing (DTP) system, a so-called anchored frame, i.e., a frame defining an image-data region, is laid out in the text, and then the desired image is laid out within the anchored frame. Once the anchored frame has been laid out in the text, it no longer necessary for the operator to designate the location at which to lay out the image in the text. In this method, the anchored frame is related to that part of the text in which the image to be laid out in the anchored frame is referred to. Hence, the image is automatically laid out near the part of the text, which will be hereinafter referred to as "image-referring part".
Since an anchored frame is laid within a text frame, i.e., a column of the text, it cannot be larger than the text frame. Hence, the anchored frame cannot be larger than the column. In other words, an image larger than the column of the text data cannot be laid out. Further, since images are laid out in the text unconditionally, but in the order they are referred to in the corresponding image-referring parts, they are laid out in disorder and irregularly, and the edited document is far from neat. To lay out these images at appropriate locations, the operator must operate the keyboard to change the locations of the images.
As has been pointed out, in the conventional document processing system, images cannot be laid out in the text if they are larger than the columns of text data. Further, the system automatically lays out images in the text, but not sufficiently neatly. Therefore, the operator of this system must lay out the images in the text orderly and regularly, spending much labor.